Olivia Devereux
Full Name: Olivia Devereux Age/Date of Birth: 21, III Quintidi Ventose, 239 AU. Gender: Female Race/Ethnicity: Durantian Citizenship: Regius Appearance: Olivia is a pretty girl, pale with deep brown hair and eyes, and rather vain. Her hair is kept shorter than style would suggest out of practicality; one only has to get a long curl caught in the gears of a machine once to learn a lesson. As she had a good Society upbringing, she can be terribly polite, genteel, and charming, but that only lasts as long as her rather limited patience. Languages spoken: She was raised to speak precise Florid Durantian, but abandoned it for straightforward communication in Durantian Common years ago. Both High Ghalean and Old Murotian were taught to her as a child, but only to an elementary level. Occupation(s): Olivia does science. She is technically gainfully employed at the morgue, but profits from the sale of undamaged or interestingly refurbished and repurposed human organs and tissues. The money, however, is funneled back into her own experiments on similar materials. She is consumed by her own work, which focuses on isolating the factors that determine latent magical ability, though she also works on general human improvement. It is common knowledge in some circles that if you take the lovely Miss Olivia Devereux home, you will either suffer a terrible accident and appear in the morgue as early as the next morning, or simply never be seen again. Likes: Being in control, music, correct hypotheses, "hunting" subjects for her experiments, mints, nice clothes. Dislikes: Politics, weakness, people who are taken in by her sweet demeanor, being interrupted, the fact that she cannot perform surgery on herself. Biography: Miss Olivia Devereux comes from a good family. Her father, Robert Devereux, made a comfortable fortune in investment and took to the bourgeoisie art of social climbing like a natural. He was deeply in love with his wife, Margaret Devereux, and was devastated when she left him for a nobleman when their daughter was only a toddler. After that, he nearly smothered the young Olivia with care and treats. A well-trained psychologist would look at her father's behavior and Olivia's cold obsession with power and use of her sexuality to entrap men, and wonder if Robert Devereux was entirely wholesome and fatherly in his affection for the girl who looked so much like her mother. Regardless, the young Olivia was delighted by the idea that her father was an important man at court, and grew up with that expectation. When she was finally old enough to join him there, she was repulsed and grossly disappointed by his servile maneuverings to gain favor. Sick of living under her father's thumb, and having realized that he still existed under the thumb of stronger men, she began to educate herself in earnest. The draw of magic began her quest for higher education, the power that the smallest and weakest soul could wield with the strength and skill of a general. It did not take long for her to learn that different people had different levels of ability, and that if some bodies conducted magic as water did electricity, hers was about as conducive as a rock. Infuriated, she dove into the sciences, which had always been the proper seat of her abilities, and demanded to know why. She hired tutors, university students, tenured professors, and began pooling a knowledge base. When she was nineteen, her father decided that it was high time she ceased her silly pursuits and joined society proper. Olivia, having made use of the family fortune in her education, politely informed him that she had no more use for him, and promptly departed for Regius, the one place where she could establish influence and conduct experiments freely, only limited by her own ability. Her life since has been a relentless series of experiments. Quote: (One-liner, motto, heart-felt remarks of the character, etc.) Aliases: Olivia Rowe, when trying to avoid connection to her family. Sexual Orientation: She is not terribly picky about gender. Also, she has an almost sexual interest in dissection because of the thrill of power it gives her. Clothing Style: If she has been working, it is likely that Olivia will be wearing a simpler shift, usually in red or a deep brown or black, that covers most of her skin. This allows her to make short trips out on work days without looking like a butcher shop. When she needs a healthy subject with certain specifications that the morgue cannot satisfy, she breaks out more ornate gowns with low necklines, often in white or black to highlight the contrast of her complexion, and enters society looking every inch the heiress to a fortune. Religion: Not particularly. Political Affiliation: Olivia is obsessed with power, so the more chaos in the political sphere, the easier it is for her to control her own environment completely. Education: Olivia was educated at home, by the insistence of her overbearing father at first and later by her own will, as one on one tutoring better served her impatience. Nonetheless, she is capable of reading and understanding any recent scientific papers on human biology and competing with any university graduate. Weapons: She carries a small handgun to certain business exchanges of a less savory nature, but, if attacked, would probably forget it entirely and put a scalpel in a vital organ. Rumor has it that a man attempted to mug her in an alley once, and was brutally vivisected. Of course, that is not very likely. Olivia is scheming, but physically weak. Special Abilities/Skills: She can remove a kidney without killing the subject in ten minutes flat. Theoretically, she would probably be a wonderful doctor. Mannerisms: Olivia accepts that her obsession with power and scientific self-improvement is probably psychologically unhealthy. It does not seem to bother her. As previously mentioned, she has the approximate magical ability of a rock. Relationship(s): Olivia has very brief relationships that begin with seduction and end shortly afterwards in a way that would make a praying mantis proud. Interests/Hobbies: Classical music and opera. Family: The only member of Olivia's family is her overbearing and obsessive father, who may or may not have behaved most unpleasantly to the girl. They no longer speak, as she walked out very much the same way her mother did, and reviles his spineless social climbing. She has been monetarily cut off. Category:Characters Category:Shah Mat Category:Regius